Xeno Survivor
by Snowfire1996
Summary: <html><head></head>An unusual connection between a xenomorph and its host. This story is unlike other alien stories. Trust me, I know. I've checked. So read this if you're on the alien's team. Just added chapter 8. On HAITUS (Sorry)</html>
1. The Beginning

Xenomorph

I opened my eyes. I looked at my surroundings. The florescent bulbs were flickering.

I looked at the ground that I was lying on. It was covered in water. I could also see some shards of glass submerged in the water.

I leaned upward, into a sitting position, but as I did so, I felt something move inside me. I turned around quickly, surveying my surroundings. I tried to remember what had happened, but my mind was blank.

There wasn't much glass, but there was water everywhere. I searched for the source of the water. It had come from a hollow glass container, labeled 'Xeno- Specimen 003'.

I staggered back, away from the container. I knew that there was now a young xenomorph within me. I thought quickly, and ran to the surgery room. I gave myself enough pain killers to make my chest numb. I grabbed a scalpel, and carefully made an incision above my stomach.

When I reached inside with my fingers, I felt it, and grabbed it. I gently pulled it out, cutting its connection to me. It fell to the floor, after I dropped it. I grabbed the surgery stitches next. I didn't know much about sewing up a body, but I knew enough to get myself in one piece again. After I finally closed the gaping hole above my belly, I fainted onto the floor.

The small creature screeched into the air. I started to hyperventilate, I survived the operation, but now the xeno itself could kill me.

I struggled to back away, but the pain in my chest prevented me. Its head turned to me quickly at my movement. It bared it teeth, ready to strike. i closed my eyes and waited for my death, but it never came.

I was curious enough to open my eyes. It was still walking towards me, but instead of barring its teeth, it was making small, squeaking clicks, almost like a young orca.

It nuzzled its head into my bandaged chest, as if it knew I were in pain. It curled into a ball, and fell asleep by my side. I stared in amazement at the creature.

Any idiot would've known that xenos are the perfect killing machines, but here I was, watching a young xeno at peace. Before I knew it, my head fell to the ground, too weak to stay up. My eyes fluttered for a second, before everything went black.

It felt like I was jerked awake. My face felt wet, so I instinctively sought out its source. I took in a startled gasp when I found it.

The small, weak chestburster that had fallen asleep next to me, wasn't so small anymore. It was about the size as a large man, or a small kangaroo. The xenomorph had apparently been drooling on me, so I stood up quickly, despite the pain in my chest.

The xenomorph's skin had changed from pink and fleshy, to a hard, black, exoskeleton-type armor. Its back had also grown a spine, and its secondary arms. Its larger arms, however, were also armored. I noticed its tail had grown a blade, but I also noticed that the blade was more elaborately decorated than a normal one. I soon found out why.

My attention was drawn to its large crest. I took in another shocked breath. It was no normal xenomorph, but in fact, it was a queen. I examined the xeno from afar, afraid of what it could do to me. After all, it was a queen, and a young one at that. Its said that some may grow as large as an elephant, or a small trailer house.

The queen tilted her head to the side, like a puppy. I figured by now, that if she was going to kill me, she would've already, so I extended my arm. She made an unusual, low clicking sound, and quickly thrust her crest into my palm.

I stumbled backwards into the wall, and felt my heartbeat accelerate. I didn't expect the xenomorph to touch my hand so quickly. The xenomorph tilted its head again, and took a hesitant step forward.

I knew I was over-reacting, but I didn't really have another choice. My body knew that this animal is hostile, and I was only reacting as a normal person would.

The creature took another, hesitant step. This time, i also took a step towards her. Again, she made a low clicking sound, when I held my arm towards her. Unlike last time, she slowly placed her crest into my palm. I calmed my breathing, and rubbed her like a cat.

"You're not so bad. Are ya." I cooed her. She purred, and nuzzled my hand.

Her skin was silky smooth, despite the thin layer of slime covering her body. She moved closer to me, and I welcomed her.

I thought of what I'd been taught about these creatures. The three most important facts:

1) They were the ultimate killing machine

2) The only lived to serve their queen

3) They would kill a human on sight, or use them for a host.

All three of those facts proved false at the moment. The queen was calm, and quite frankly, friendly. She was also nuzzling my hand, which disproved the third fact.

I returned my attention back to the queen when she opened her mouth. Her smaller mouth came out, and I jerked away. She made a low growling sound, but it wasn't hostile, but sad.

I moved back to my previous spot after some time. She opened her mouth again, revealing her inner mouth. I took a closer look at it. People who studied these creatures rarely got a look at the inner mouth, because it shot out of their mouth at lightning speed.

The inner mouth also opened, and an oozing liquid came out of it. I watched in amazement, as it started to harden, causing it to look like the xenomorph's skin. I moved my hand away, and covered the liquid with my lab coat.

The queen made the low growl, and sat on her hind legs, almost like a small toddler pouting.

"Shhhhhh. It's okay. Come here." I said softly to it. Her head looked up at me, and looked at me with her invisible eyes, although, we learned that they can see with smell, and echolocation.

I walked over to it, and hugged its crest. I knew that this was a death move, but I just had the feeling, just a feeling, that she wouldn't hurt me. As if I knew that she wanted me to.

She purred happily, and rubbed her head against my chest. I gasped at the pain in my chest, and fell to the floor.

My stitches were still healing, and the queen rubbing against them agitated the skin around it. I felt a sudden rush of worry, and fear. I looked up at the young queen. She was looking down on me from above. She was clearly anxious about me.

I gasped again, and clutched my chest. She wrapped her body around me, encasing me from any danger. I could see now, that she truly cared for me… like I was her family. I new thought occurred to me.

'Maybe Xenos are only misunderstood. Maybe they're like bees. If you don't bother them, they won't bother you.'

The queen shifted her weight, so her head faced me. I looked at her, and she nodded. I blinked out of shock.

'Did she just say yes to my thought?' She nodded again. I froze.

I had heard some scientists arguing about how the queen communicates with the rest of her hive. One said that she sends out loud clicks throughout the nest, bouncing off the walls, but the other scientist believed in a theory. They believed that the queen could use telepathy, that way any member of the hive can tell the queen exactly what the situation is, almost like two people talking to each other on a phone.

The queen nudged my head, and snatched me out of my trance. 'You can hear my thoughts, can't you?' I asked in my head.

She rested her head next to mine, and sighed.

'I'll take that as a yes.' I gently moved my hand up and down her forehead, caressing her. I realized then, that she loved me, like I was her mother, although, I was technically. The only other person ever to survive a chestburster, was Ellen Ripley, whose whereabouts are unknown. She disappeared after the last xeno outbreak.

I felt my eyes close, and I reluctantly fell asleep next to the most dangerous creature I knew.


	2. Explaining

My eyes fluttered open. There was't any light, and I felt something next to my head. I turned, but still saw nothing. I tried to sit upright, but I was pinned down, with something lying across my legs. There was also something smaller on my chest, and it was a lot thinner than the thing on my legs.

All of my memories came flooding into my head at once. The facehugger, the chestburster, the queen… I lifted my arm, and stroked the object next to my head. Just as I thought, it was the queen's head. Her body moved slightly, causing light to penetrate her barrier. I saw that her tail was draped across my chest, and her back leg was placed on top of mine. I shifted my weight, and tried to lean up again. This time, the queen slid her tail off of my chest, and she moved her legs. I slowly leaned up, careful not to stretch the stitches, while the queen stood up. I checked the stitches once I was standing.

'No tear. Good.' I thought. I turned to the queen, who was even larger than the night before. While standing, she was taller than me by about 3 feet, and I was tall for a girl. Her crest was larger than before, and more decorative. It expanded slowly until it curved at to end to the middle. To me, it looked like a mis-shapen pentagon, with two long sides. Her back legs, and all three arms were covered in even more armor, and her tail blade was much larger, and was shaped like a very thin diamond, with a circle shape cut out of it. This gave it the elegant look, and made it look more royal. Her back armor had clearly grown also. Instead of one row of spines going down her back, there were now two, side by side.

To me, she looked almost fully grown. "Wow. You got big." I said aloud, not believing it. She nodded, and pushed her head into my chest, almost causing me to fall again, but I rubbed her head back instead. She suddenly pulled back, and held her head high, and looking at the doors to the room. I heard at least 4 different pairs of footsteps coming at once, along with the sound of guns being reloaded.

I turned back to the queen, who was now growling. 'Quick! Go!' I yelled in my head. She turned her head to me, and nuzzled closer, showing me she didn't want to go. 'You have to go! I don't want you to get hurt! Go!' I shoved her head off of me. She lowered her head, clearly sad. 'Go through the vents! They won't look for you there. Get going! Before they get here!'

The last thing I heard, was a small cracking sound, and then a small hiss, before the door slid open. Five soldiers stood behind it. All of them were aiming down the sights. The leader held a fist up into the air. "We have a survivor! Get her to the safe house!" I stood frozen while the team lowered their weapons.. "What do you mean 'safe house'?" I asked. The leader responded. "There was a blackout, and we were instructed to recruit all survivors to a holding facility. Let's get going." I followed them to an old storage room, where five of my co-workers already were. "Cassie! We were afraid you hadn't made it!" I was greeted by hugs. "Ow!" The stitches in my chest burned and itched. In the back of my mind, I heard a scream. No one in the room had heard it, so I wondered where it came from. 'The Queen' I thought.

"What's wrong Cassie?" Brandon asked, clearly knowing I wasn't in the best shape. I didn't know what to tell him. 'Oh yeah, I was just the host to a queen.' That'll blow over well. "My chest hurts, that's all." He backed away quickly. "Y-y-you're i-impregnanted!" He yelled. The other scientists huddled into the corner. "No I'm not! Look!" I carefully unbuttoned my shirt to show them the stitches. "How did that happen?" Someone asked. I didn't answer them. And then one spotted my arm. "AND WHAT IS THAT!" They pointed to my arm.

Lucky for me, the soldiers came into the room. "Okay, we've found all the survivors. Now come with me, and we'll get out of here." Everyone started to walk to the door, while I stayed where I was. "Come on Ms. We've got to go." I remained still. The soldier grabbed my arm, and hauled me off the ground, which caused the stitches to stretch.

"Ack!" I choked out. The greatest pain shot through my body. I heard the queen scream again, and suddenly, I felt her move. It was hard to explain, but I knew she was moving through the vents. She was coming to save me from getting hurt anymore.

'No!' But it was too late. I loud bang sounded outside the storage room, and there were two screams from the guards standing outside. The scientists huddled into the corner again, and the three remaining soldiers took aim at the door. It was getting dented inward, and I knew why. When the doors were suddenly shoved open, the soldiers started to shoot. I had to cover my ears from the sound. When they stopped, I stood up, wondering where the queen was.

"Did you see anything?" One of the soldiers asked another. "Negative. Smith, go check to see if it's clear." But none of the soldiers moved.

"Smith!" When the smallest of the soldier took a hesitant step forward, I ran past them, not wanting the queen to get hurt. "Cassie!" Brandon yelled. "Dr.!" The leader yelled at the same time. The moment I stepped out of the doorway, the first thing I noticed was that it was almost pitch black, and I barely saw anything. I turned the corner, so that the people in the room couldn't see me.

'Where are you?' I asked in my head. 'Up' I heard. I gasped, but looked in that direction.

The queen was hanging upside down, looking down at everyone, but when I looked up, she flipped over, and landed on the ground silently.

'I missed you' She said. I rubbed her crest, and whispered quietly "I told you to stay." She made a low growl.

'Someone's coming!' I spun around, and saw the soldier known as Smith. "D-d-dr.?" He stuttered.

"I'm right here, and I'm fine." Smith grabbed my arm, which caused the queen to hiss. "What was that!" He yelled. the people in the room also heard it. "It's a xenomorph!" A scientist yelled. "We're doomed!" Another shrieked. Smith ran back into the room.

"Cassie! Get in here! You know better than any of us, that xenomorphs kill humans!" I stayed where I was. "It's alright. She won't hurt me." There was no answer. 'Follow me… Slowly' I thought. The queen came out of the shadows, and obeyed me. I backed into the room slowly. 'Wait a moment' I thought.

"Put your weapons down! Now! And she won't hurt you!" Smith almost dropped his, while another placed it slowly onto the ground. "Randal, I think we should listen to her." The leader growled, and threw it onto the ground. "

Now kick them over here." All three of them did as told, only because they could see that the scientists were frightened to death.

'Okay, Slowly' I thought. I backed farther into the room. The queen hissed a little when the light hit her. "A x-xenomorph!" Brandon literally screamed. The queen shrieked at him. The sound had caused her ears to hurt. Again, I backed into the room, this time, the queen stepped into the room completely.

"A q-queen!" A scientist squeaked quietly. "It's okay. She won't hurt anybody." Brandon stood shakily on his feet, and took a step towards the xenomorph. The queen hissed at the action, causing Brandon to shrink back. I shhed the queen, and rubbed her crest. Although Smith was the smallest soldier, he took a bold move by stepping towards her. The queen quietly growled, but Smith continued to take his chances by stepping even closer. The queen started to hiss, and open her mouth. She shot out her inner mouth when Smith ignored her threats. I felt her tail wrap around my waist, as she crouched, ready to pounce on him.

"Smith! Are you mad!" The queen leaped, and pinned his arms and legs down with her own, leaving her secondary arms free. She snarled viciously at Smith's face, and opened her mouth. I knew what she was about to do. I knew that she was only protecting me.

'Stop!' I screamed in my head. The queen's inner mouth froze only inches from Smith's head. She turned to look at me. 'Why? He was getting too close! He could've killed you!' She yelled back.

'Get off him! Now!' I ordered her. She hissed, but obeyed my command. Smith crawled backward to the other two soldiers. "Why did it stop!" A scientist asked surprised.

"They always kill their victim! Every scientist knows that a xenomorph cannot be stopped in an attack, no matter who it's attacking, even if it's one of its own kind! Our tests prove it!" I unwrapped the queen's tail from around my waist.

"She stopped because I told her to!" I yelled over everyone else. No one was paying attention, and continued to quarrel with each other. The queen suddenly let out a loud, high-pitch screech, causing everyone, including me, to cover their ears. She closed her mouth, and the noise stopped. I uncovered my ears, and spoke.

"She stopped, because I told her, using telepathy." The scientists had confused faces, while the soldiers only watched the xenomorph. Brandon took an unsteady step towards me, knowing the queen would get defensive.

"That's only a theory Cassie. No one knows what they do to communicate. Are you sure you're feeling well?" He asked worriedly. The queen lifted her upper lip, telling Brandon to back away. He obediently listened to her.

"I know that there's a xenomorph in here, but she won't hurt any of you. So listen to me." They all moved their eyes to me. 'Can you lie down so they feel safer? I need them to listen instead of worrying if you're going to kill them.' The queen lowered her head, and lied down on her side.

'They have a reason to be afraid.' I returned my attention to everyone else. "I'll start with the moment the power went off." Brandon and the scientists were confused.

"I woke up in the facehugger specimen room, and I didn't know what was going on, until a saw that one of the jars was on the floor, broken." Brandon took in a shocked gasp. "I thought quickly, and ran to the surgery room, and removed the… chestburster." The queen lifted her head slowly. She never knew what had happened before she was taken out of my chest. She looked curious.

"After that, I fainted, and thought that I had killed the xenomorph by taking it out." The queen hissed. 'You were trying to kill me?' she asked. 'Yes, but that was before I knew that xenomorphs weren't deadly.' The queen placed her head back on the ground and sighed.

"When I woke back up, I found that the xenomorph had fallen asleep next to me, like a dog. Soon after that, I found that it was in fact a queen xenomorph." I let the scientists connect the queen next to me to my story.

"So you're tryin' to tell me that xenomorph's aren't so bad? Is that it?" Brandon said sarcastically.

"Actually, yes." Brandon took a step towards me, getting a weak reaction from the queen. He ignored it and came up to me. The queen shifted her weight, and started to lift her body off the ground. Brandon grabbed my arm gently, and ignored the queen again. I pushed his hand off of me,

"Brandon, just because I can speak to her, doesn't mean I can't stop her from attacking." Th queen hissed, proving my point. Brandon quickly backed away from me.

"Can you prove that you can communicate with her?" Someone asked. I nodded. I turned the queen, and said out loud.

"Can you go outside the room, just for now." She lifted her upper lip, but backed slowly out of the room. "What are we gonna do Cassie?" Brandon asked. I sighed.

"I don't know Brandon. It won't be long now until she starts to lay eggs. And I… I just can't leave her alone. We're connected." Smith took in a short breath, while the scientists still quivered in the corner.

"Well, if you're not going, what about us? I'm not going to become a host to a xenomorph any time soon." I closed my eyes, knowing what would happen. 'Let them leave. They won't hurt either of us.' I told the queen. She walked back into the room, and stood behind me. Brandon waved his arm to the other scientists, and they followed him out of the room.

The soldiers however, stood where they were. One even tried reaching for his weapon. The queen watched him suspiciously. The moment his fingers touched the weapon, the queen pounced on him. I knew that the soldiers couldn't be trusted, even if I let them go.

'Don't kill them. I have something better planned for them.' I told the queen, and she nodded in return. I grabbed the soldier's arms, and brought them to an old storage room. It was about half the length of a football stadium, and as high as a ten-story building. I threw the soldiers against the nearest wall.

'Can you restrain them to the wall?' I asked to the queen. She lowered her head, and opened her mouth, releasing an oozing substance. I glanced down to my arm, where the same liquid had covered it, and hardened.

"What the hell are you doing? I thought you were going to let us go!" Smith yelled.

"I can't trust any of you! You just tried to grab your weapon! I can't let you leave now."


	3. Searching

"What do you mean we can't leave! The stupid scientists are the ones who started this mess, and WE have to take the blame!" They shouted, knowing their lives were on the line. I left the room with the queen right behind me.

I felt the need to kill every single one of them, to use them as hosts, but then I shook my head frantically searching for the cause of my anger. I WANTED them to go. I WANTED to release them. So why didn't I?

The queen sensed my discomfort, and leaned in closer. 'We are connected, remember? Whatever I'm thinking of, you'll think the same.' The queen was right. I soon found that by being connected to her, I'm also BECOMING her, in some way. The connection to her brain was causing my own to become tainted by her own thoughts. 'We can't kill them!' I yelled; finally getting my senses back.

The queen hissed, but also moaned at the same time. 'There needs to be a way so I can reproduce. A queen cannot live without doing so. It'll kill her.'

'Do we have to use the soldiers! We could find a way other than this! I'm a scientist for crying out loud! I'm pretty sure I can find a way to alter your DNA to change your kind's life cycle.' The queen took a surprised step backward.

'You are SURE of this? If you are wrong… it could put you in danger.' I nodded, and spun around to the soldiers against the wall. Smith and Randal were both frightened to death, judging by the paleness on their faces. "I guess you guys are lucky." Smith's eyes looked hopeful.

"If I let you go, you've got to stay away from here. If I ever see you again, you'll get killed. Got it!"

They all nodded nervously. I motioned my head to the queen, who interpreted my movement to release them. She snorted, and leaned down to the soldiers. She used her inner mouth to break the seal on the hardened liquid. Once the shell was broken, all the soldiers ran for it. The queen hissed as loud as she could to warn them never to come back.

I uncovered my ears and heard the queen let out a long sigh. "I WILL find a way. Now come on. I'd guess you have about… a day before the egg sack starts to show. The lab isn't that much farther." The queen followed me through the halls, until I came upon the door with 'Xeno Lab' written across the top of it.

"You stay out here, while I look through the data. There might be some information we could use." She nodded slowly, and lied down in front of the door.

In the lab, the lights flickered off and on, making it harder to see. I saw a stack of papers filled with the history of the xenomorphs, but continued to search for the information I needed. Files by the names of 'Ellen Ripley', 'Xeno Species', and 'Xeno Outbreaks'. I searched until I found multiple files that had information I searched for. 'Life Cycle of Xenos' and 'DNA Testing'.

A hiss from the corner of the room started me. I looked over the small table, and saw a small chair. There was nothing else there, so I assumed the queen had started to play tricks with me.

'Where are you?' I asked. I felt the queen wake from her short sleep. 'Outside the room, where you told me to stay.' I gasped. 'What's wrong?' she asked.

'I heard something in here. I thought it was you. It sounded like another x-!'

Suddenly, my body was pinned against the ground. my arms and legs were immobilized, and my head was frozen in fear as I looked up at creature holding me down. Its black exoskeleton shone in the flickering lights, and its dome seemed smooth to the touch. This was clearly a xenomorph drone. The creature leaned in closer, to smell me, only to find that I smelt like the queen.

'C-c-could you h-h-help please?' I asked in my head desperately.

The queen burst through the doors, searching for me. When she spotted the other xeno on top of me, she hissed at it.

'GET. OFF. OF. HER. NOW!' The xeno hesitated, but followed the queen's demands, and bowed its head in surrender. I took in a few short breaths, and leaned up.

'Are you okay?' She asked me. I nodded ran my hand through my hair.

The queen swung her head around to the drone, whom shrunk back against the wall in fear. I gained my footing, and reached out to the queen, who only huffed out in acknowledge. The drone whimpered. It seemed to me that it was begging to be spared punishment.

"Don't hurt her." I said to the queen quietly. She quieted her growling, and lowered her head.

I took a few steps toward the drone, making it growl. This action was quickly silenced by the queen's own growl. When I was close enough to touch it, I extended my arm. The drone saw the arm as an attack, and hissed.

I jerked my arm back, and slowly reached back out to the xenomorph again. Unlike last time, the xenomorph remained still, and allowed me to get closer than before. When my palm made contact with the smooth dome, I rubbed my hand back and forth.

Physically, the body of the xenomorph relaxed. Its dorsal spines lied down closer to its back, and its tail blade became still on the ground. "You're not so bad are you? You were only defending yourself." The xenomorph seemed to nod in agreement, but froze again when the queen took a step closer.

'Do you have any sisters?' the queen asked. The xenomorph nodded in response. 'How many others?' I was unable to hear the answer.

'How many?' I asked her. She turned to me. 'Three. I must connect with their minds to become their queen, and I'll start with her.' The queen walked over to the drone, and softly caressed the drone's head with her own. Something in my own head clicked. First I felt just the connection to the queen, then there was another feeling entirely. When the queen backed away from the xenomorph, she raised her head proudly, accepting the new member of the hive.

When I heard another, weaker voice in my head, I gasped in shock.

'M-my queen. I am sorry for attacking this human. I-I had no idea she was your host.' The queen raised her arm.

'You are forgiven. I understand that hosts rarely ever survive.' I grabbed my head in confusion. 'I can hear both of you now.'

'Of course you can. The drones of the hive must always be connected to their queen. It is to give commands without being near them.' I nodded in understanding.

'Then we should probably find the others.' When the queen turned and headed for the door, I stood up and walked next to her.

Before she left, she turned her head to the other xenomorph.

'Come with me.' The drone bowed their head, and followed us on all fours.


	4. Fighting

-Note to readers-

**I know this took a while, but I've recently gotten sucked into the Doctor Who series. I LOVE everyone that reviewed my stories! Even if it may take a long time for me to update, at least it's worth it!**

The drone seemed to be more comfortable crawling on all fours as we traveled through the long hallways and corridors. Some of them were only faintly lighted, while others were completely dark. In the case of there being no lights, the queen allowed me to keep my hand on her side.

After a few turns, the xenomorph in front of us stopped. 'They're close.' The queen strode forward and into the nearest room. It was the cafeteria. Almost all of the tables were knocked to their sides, and a few were nearly shredded.

The queen sent a short, loud screech that echoed off the walls of the empty room. 'I know you're in here. I am your queen. Come forward now.' she ordered.

Sure enough, a xeno jumped up from behind the counter. I noticed that this xeno had a much smaller build. It's dome head was still fleshy looking, and slightly pink. It was clear that this xeno was younger than the last one we met.

The queen lowered her head, and sniffed the younger xeno. It made low clicks, and moved closer to her. When she knew she was close enough, the queen rested her head against the xeno. The same sensation happened in my head once again. The sudden clicking. Like another mind came into my own. 'Do you know where your sisters are?' The queen asked.

The younger one shook its head. 'They both left. I think they went in the other room over there.' She flicked her tail out the door and pointed to the room across the hall.

The queen dipped her head, and turned to me before going to the next room, as if knowing I had something to say. 'I haven't seen a warrior drone yet. My guess is that they were the first to be born. They're both probably in that room.'

The queen nodded, and padded out of the room. Before I followed, I knelt down to the younger xenomorph. 'Hi there. I'm Cassie.' I held my hand out to stroke it.

Unlike the last xenomorph, it instantly rubbed my hand without hesitation. 'You're friendly. Come on. Let's go find your sisters.' She bounded happily along my side as we went into the other room.

The queen stood in the middle of the room, which turned out to be one of the research labs. 'I am you're queen. Come forward now.' she roared.

Silence.

'I command you as your queen. Come forward now!' She hissed quietly as a warning.

From the corner of my eye, I saw movement. It was only for a second.

When I turned to see what it was, it was gone.

'Over there. I saw something.' I pointed to the dark corner. Before the queen could turn, another xeno from the other side of the room made its presence known by crawling across the floor. It bowed its head to its queen, and raised it when the queen took a step towards it.

The two xenomorphs made contact with each other, sending the telepathic link between them.

A sudden force push me to the ground. I choked on my words as the air was knocked out of me. The floor provided no soft landing. I felt it when my shoulder dislocated, snapping out of place. I barely had time to process the pain as my head hit the hard ground also.

The blood was pounding in my ears, and I tried to scream out, but before I could, I started going in and out of consciousness. Every now and then I would hear jumbled words and noises, but they were too distant for me to comprehend.

I felt something touch my head and move it to the side. With all the strength I had, I turned my head to see what had pushed me. It was a blur, but I saw the outline of the queen standing over me. 'Cassie! Are you okay?' she asked franticly. I lifted my arm and placed it on the side of her head. 'I-I'm alright. But… I-I think my shoulder's dislocated.' She huffed out in relief. "What happened?" I said aloud.

'She attacked you from behind. I had to bite her to get her off of you.' I brought my attention to her now, slightly dissolved teeth. The acidic blood had eaten away at the frontmost teeth, leaving them dull. On her forehead, there was a deep scratch that ran along down to her lower jaw. 'You're hurt.' I reached for the cut, but stopped short when I remembered the blood would burn through my hand.

'It's only a scratch. It will heal quickly. But you are only human, and you said your shoulder is hurt. It will take far much longer for **you **to heal yourself than I will.' She leaned closer and sniffed the wound to my shoulder. Ever so gingerly, she used her secondary arms and lifted my arm. Her grip was more careful and soft than I would have thought possible for a xenomorph. 'I'm going to have to place it back correctly. Are you ready?' I nodded and waited for the pain.

Just as I thought, the pain seared my entire arm. A soft 'click' was heard when my shoulder joint was put back in its hinge. I grabbed my arm and rose to my feet. 'Does my head look alright?' I asked.

I saw her nod slowly. 'There is only a small amount of blood.'

I ripped off the lower sleeve of my lab coat, and wrapped it around my shoulder. 'Where is she?' The queen hissed and pointed her tail behind me, where another, hissing xenomorph crouched. It was in a defensive position, with its tail raised above its head, teeth bared, and inner mouth snapping in and out of its larger mouth.

'She is the oldest. The most intelligent. And the most experienced. She was born before even I was. She guarded every single one of her sisters when they were born themselves.' I didn't attempt to approach the xenomorph, seeing as it probably wasn't even possible.

'Have you already connected with her?' She nodded.

'So this is it then? Right?' Again, she nodded… but then she turned to the dark corner the oldest xenomorph had hidden in before. 'There's something else.' I searched through the cabinets until I found the emergency flashlight. I shone it straight into the corner, and found a body.

A breathing body.

"She was protecting her sister…" I said aloud. The body moved without awakening.

A small, but distinct snapping noise was heard. The chest began expanding outward in short bursts. Each time it got stronger. The queen crouched to her hands, and sniffed the body. As she did so, the skin above the ribs broke. The chestburster screamed out for air, and fell to the floor.

The queen rubbed her head against it's side, and connected with its mind. 'She is the last.' The queen pushed herself off the ground, and took a few steps over to the older xenomorph. 'You have loyalty to your sisters. You are willing to protect them with your own life. Are you willing to do the same for me?' She demanded the question to be answered.

The xeno rose from its position, and bowed her head. 'Of course. I was only protecting my sister from the humans.' I felt the queen resisted growling. 'THIS human, is NOT to be harmed. She was my host. She protected me from the human warriors, and I she is to be treated as part of this hive. I hope that there will no longer be a misunderstanding in the future.'

The xeno hissed slightly, but nodded. 'I understand. I will serve under YOUR rule alone.' She turned her head to me. 'But I refuse to obey a weaker species.'

The queen began walking out of the room. 'Cassie… Where do we need to go?' I moved to her side. 'The Genetics Testing room. All the tools I need will be there.' I winced as my shoulder burned. 'We should start moving then.'


	5. New Beginning

**Sorry guys! :( I know it's short**

**I know it took awhile… again, but I have to study hard a LOT, and writing stories is too low on my list of things to do. **

**Anyway, here's the next chapter**

"It's around here somewhere. I just know it is." The endless hallways confused me, but I continued down them. Every door we walked passed, I checked.

It seemed hopeless, until we finally found the door with, 'Genetic Testing Room' engraved on top. "Here it is!"

I ran inside to find the room in complete darkness.

'Is there a light somewhere?'

The queen touch my head with her own, and my vision changed.

I could still see, but I saw everything with a slight vibration. With each vibration, I saw more and more of whatever I was looking at.

'Is this how you see?'

She nodded.

The room wasn't that large, but it was enough so the queen could comfortably squeeze inside. The drones had to wait outside.

'How are you going to change my lifecycle?' she tilted her head in confusion.

'First…' I searched through the drawers until I found a titanium syringe. 'I need to take a sample to start with. Then, it'll be easy to manipulate the DNA itself. But it may take a while to make a formula to effect the rest of your cells.'

'How long?'

I retrieved all the materials I needed, before answering, 'At least an hour. Maybe more.'

She growled in a moaning fashion, as if she were a child pouting. She found a corner and curled into a small ball with her tail wrapped around her side.

'I'll let you sleep as soon as I take some of your blood.'

She barely reacted when the needle entered her skin. Probably because her skin was already a thick armor.

I carefully placed a single drop onto the thick metallic petri-dish, and started writing notes.

…

"I've got it!" I exclaimed.

It had taken longer than I expected, but I had finished the formula before the queen had woken up from her nap. Once I had accidentally spilt the searing liquid onto my knuckles from being excited, I clenched my fists. Though it was only a few drops, it burnt down to the bone easily. At that point, the queen had jerked her head towards me.

'Are you alright?' I nodded quickly, not wanting her to worry. 'You can't lie to me. I know you're hurt.' She pushed herself off the ground. 'Show me.' she told me. I only brought my hand closer to my chest. "It's nothing", I said with clenched teeth. Most the flesh on my knuckles had been eaten away by now.

'I know it isn't nothing. Just show me.' It felt as though I could her the begging in her words, even if it was telepathy. She leaned closer to my chest, trying to find out what was wrong.

I felt reluctant to show her, afraid of scaring her with what could happen if I stay with her too long; what could happen if she got hurt around me.

"I-I spilt some of your blood on my hand." I lifted my hand, and held it out to her slowly. The queen almost touched the side of her face to the burn mark. 'Stay still.' She leaned closer.

I wasn't sure if I should trust her, but quickly shoved the thought away. The queen opened her mouth and allowed her smaller mouth to emerge slowly. The oozing, black substance from the inner mouth's teeth, dripped onto my arm. It slid across where the hardened liquid already was. The more it hardened, the more it slid down my arm. Soon, it reached my hand. Not only did it cover the wound, but the substance also filled it.

The moment it did, I felt it enter my bloodstream. I found that the strangest part of the experience was that it didn't hurt, in fact, it felt like a sudden wave of warm energy surged through my body.

"What is this stuff?" I stroked my now, black, thick skin. The queen responded 'It's how we heal ourselves. It wasn't meant to heal humans, so it replaced your skin for ours. it probably replaced most of your blood too.'

I sighed. "So my blood is acid now right?" She surprised me when she shook her head. 'No. Not completely. Since you're still human the blood will only be slightly acidic.'

I turned back to to solution I had just finished, and grabbed a syringe. "Okay, Once I inject this, it will rearrange your DNA so your life cycle is closer to a humans, but it may take time for it to work."

'As long as it makes you safe.' She remained still as I carefully pushed the needle into her armor. When I pulled it back out, I opened a drawer and placed the syringe into the secret compartment. I didn't want it used for the wrong purposes if someone else found it.

When the queen and I exited the room, the 5 xenos looked up. The oldest warrior had climbed above onto one of the pipes, and let her tail fall over the side. Meanwhile, the 4 others were tackling each other to the ground. Although, the chestburster seemed to be the slowest, and kept losing. The queen mentally purred at their actions.

As I watched them, I thought of how I'll know which alien is which. I knew the oldest easily, because of her larger, more armored dome, but the others looked similar. Sure, one had smaller fins on her back, and another had a longer tail, but all together, it was hard to tell.

'Do you think we can name them? I mean, how do we tell them apart?'

The queen turned her head to me. 'It's unnecessary, but if you want to, you can. It'll be hard to call the oldest by another name. She'll be used to not having one.'

I knelt down next to the chestburster first, seeing as it would get used to a name fairly quickly. When it started to wiggle towards me, I held my hand out and rubbed the side of its head. 'I'd like to name you… Rachel. Do you like that Rachel?' I asked her.

She nearly hopped onto my shoulder, but fell to the floor when she couldn't get a grip. 'I think that's a yes.' The queen said from behind me.

The oldest merely huffed out a puff of air. I could just imagine her rolling her eyes if she had them. 'So this is what we're reduced to.' She jumped down from her perch, and stood above her sisters. 'Reduced to being a human's pet' As she edged closer to me, the queen growled.

'You know very well that she is my host and my surrogate mother. She can name you if she wants.' The queen lifted her lip. The oldest stood still, analyzing her options. She glanced over to me, but dropped to all fours, and bowed to the queen. 'I'm only saying that a lower species shouldn't be treating US like WE'RE the lower species.'

When the queen understood, she bowed back, though it was more restrained. 'Cassie is an exception. She will protect the hive from intruders. And in return, We protect her. Understood.' It wasn't a question. It was a demand. The oldest snapped her jaws, but backed away in surrender.

'We can't stay here. We need to find a suitable space for the hive.' the queen stated to everyone. The newly named Rachel curled around my leg so I lifted her into my arms. 'I know just the perfect spot.' I said.

**Okay, since the naming process would be a repeated sequence, I'll put the names here, and then a description so you know which one it is.**

**Xeno names:**

**Possible queen name -Basilia**

** -Write a review telling me whether or not you want the queen to have a name. If you'd like to suggest another name, go ahead. **

**I only put Basilia because it means Queenly in Greek**

**Jane- A warrior drone- The oldest**

**Meg- A warrior drone- The second oldest- Has smaller than normal fins- Quietest- First to come forward in the lab**

**Sam- The first one to attack Cassie/ First to join the new hive- Has the longest tail**

**Lucy- The second youngest- The most friendly- The one that was in the cafeteria**

**Rachel- The youngest, smallest**


	6. Adapting

Hey guys! (Haven't been online because of School. I should be able to be online more during Summer Vacation)

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Here are the names (I didn't really change them, but I enjoyed reading the possible names you guys came up with)

Flaitheas( Flay-thee-as )- Queen-(Means Royal in Gaelic)

Jane- A warrior drone- Fastest- Oldest

Meg-A warrior drone- Second oldest- Has smaller than normal fins (Less agility) - Quietest - Was the first to come forward in lab

Alice- A normal drone - First to attack Cassie - First to join hive - Has longest tail (Best at balancing on surfaces)

Lucy -Second youngest - Most friendly -The one found in cafeteria

Rachel - Youngest- Has smallest primary arms (Has trouble holding onto surfaces)

I'm just going to call them by name instead of repeating the same 'this is your name' sequence.

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Rachel had taken a liking to sitting on my shoulder, while Jane, the oldest, reluctantly walked next to me. 'Here it is. It used to be a storage room, but now it's an empty space.'

The room was fairly big; half a football field's worth. 'It's perfect Cassie.' Flaitheas told me before ordering Jane and Meg 'Cover any and all surfaces.'

Alice quickly found a space between two crates to fall asleep, while Meg and Jane began to cover walls with the same secretion on my arm. Lucy seemed to be the most active, and wanted any type of activity to keep her from being bored.

She crawled cautiously to Jane, and prodded her side with her hand. It took a few more pokes to get her attention. She growled quietly, and stopped what she was doing. 'What!' she snapped the younger alien.

Lucy jumped at the sudden noise, and curled her tail around her legs sheepishly. 'P-Play?'

Jane seemed to be in no mood for her younger sibling's games, and immediately went back to her assigned job.

The smaller xeno kept low to the ground, as if afraid if Jane was going to hurt her, and made her way to Meg.

Before even touching her, Meg turned her head, and gently shooed Lucy away. 'Don't worry Lucy, we won't be long. I'll play with you when we're done.'

Lucy sat in the middle of the floor, like a neglected child.

I felt a sudden itch on my arm, and turned to find what had caused it. Rachel had been prodding her newly grown claws at my skin. I smirked, and carefully lifted her off my shoulder.

'Rachel. How about you play with Lucy? Jane and Meg don't seem to want to play with her.' Rachel's head perked up at her name, along with Lucy's. The much smaller xeno squirmed to get out of my grip. 'Okay okay. Here you go.' I placed her on the ground.

She tried to stand up properly, but fell back down. I bent down to help her, but she squeaked when I touched her, as a signal to _not _help.

She thrashed back and forth. At this moment, Flaitheas turned to her. 'She's molting. She'll be able to do so without any outside help.'

I nodded, and heard a faint, 'crack'. I looked down to find Rachel's exoskeleton had become darker, but still pinkish, almost like Lucy's. But Lucy was nearly twice her sibling's size.

Rachel wriggled out of her previous shell, and stood on her newly developed legs. Though she was still wobbly, she was able to jump onto Lucy's head, but she soon lost grip due to her smaller primary arms.

'Be gentle with her Lucy. She's still too young to play rough.' I told her. She nodded and crouched down to all fours.

Rachel crawled towards her sister, and pounced onto her head again. This time, however, she managed to hang on. Lucy squealed in delight and moved her head up and down slowly, as if to give Rachel a bigger challenge.

I laughed when Rachel wrapped her tail around Lucy's mouth, making her unable to open it.

Flaitheas shook her body, causing her back fins to rattle together. 'That's enough for now. We can finish it tomorrow.'

Jane and Meg bowed their heads, and found their own sleeping spots. Jane found a lone crate off to the side of the room, and lied on top of it. Meg gathered Lucy and Rachel to where Alice was resting, and curled into a ball next to Lucy. Rachel found a comfy spot on Lucy's back.

Flaitheas wrapped her tail around me, and led me to where most of the drones were sleeping. She lifted me into the air while she slumped to her side. When she was settled, she carefully placed me next to her chest.

I found that xenomorphs were actually pretty warm. Not a constant 98.6 degrees like humans, but probably more variable from the 40s to the 60s.

I rested my head on her chest, and used her tail as an unconventional blanket; wrapping it around me from my abdomen down.

She purred quietly when I stroked her tail. 'You may be a surrogate mother, only destined to die by my kind's standards, but you've proven that you care for me. Jane may not see this, but you would be an excellent queen. You care for all of them, like me.'

I sighed happily, and closed my eyes. 'You may be a different species, but you have my blood in your veins, and now I have some of yours.' I lifted my arm. 'I love you. Just as much as any mother would a daughter. '

She purred and curled her body around me even more.

It only took a few more days to cover the entire wall with the slime, and by then, Lucy and Rachel had finished their molting.

We began scouting the entire base. Each and every room. I found a small journal in one of them, and decided to keep it as a record of time.

And we did this every day. When we were sure each room was clear, Flaitheas ordered Meg and Jane to cover the walls of that room.

As I was writing in my journal one day, and suddenly heard, 'Cassie!'

I closed my journal and threw it to the side. 'What is it?'

Fliatheas answered, 'There are humans! In Sector A. Jane was hurt, but only slightly. I need you to reason with them.'

I agreed and made my way to Sector A. The secretions of slime were everywhere. The only uncharted area was Sector A. Of course, I've been there before, but only once.

I made it to Sector A, but there were no other humans.

'Where are they?' I waited for an answer.

'They're in the room ahead.'

I rushed to the door and started to bang on it.

"Let me in!" I shouted aloud.

The doors slid open slowly. I saw 5 marines pointing guns at me. "Put your weapons down!" The leader said. He turned back to me. "Are you hurt m'am?"

I shook my head. "I'm fine, but you need to put your weapons on the ground. The creatures here won't harm you if you don't harm them first." They didn't move. "Please! They're like bees! If you leave them alone, they'll leave you alone."

A smaller-built soldier lowered his gun. "Mason! I did _not _order you to lower your weapon!" He refused to obey him. "I think we should listen to her. After all, it only took one of those things to take out Ian and Brent. If there are more, then we're all fucked."

The other four soldiers seemed to hear his point, and threw their weapons toward me. "You'd better be telling you the truth." The leader mumbled as he dropped his gun to the floor.

'Meg. Come here… carefully.'

She took a few moments to reach the door where I came through, but when she did, she made a small ' bang'.

The leader lent down for his gun, but I thought quickly, and kicked it away. "She won't hurt you."

I opened the door, and she hissed at the sight of them. 'Calm down. They're harmless without guns.' I told her.

At this statement, she visibly relaxed. I reached my hand out and let the xenomorph rub against it. The marines flinched when Meg turned to them. She took deep, steady breaths. Some of the marines calmed down after about 5 or 8 minutes of standing there doing nothing.

Finally, one of them took a step towards the drone. "Mason! What the hell are you doing!"

Meg didn't move. Every step Mason took, I kept calming the drone down with my head.

When the man was finally close enough, he reached his hand out. Meg sniffed it and hissed again. But then she pushed her head into Mason's hand.

I knew the other soldiers were calm enough to let Flaitheas in.

'It's okay to come now.' I told her.

When I focused, I could sense every step she took, shaking the floor slightly every time. I could sense her getting closer. I looked up at the leader. "Whatever you do, don't run. She won't hurt you. Got it?" He nodded slowly.

She'd decided to bring the other drones as well with her. They were the ones who crawled through the hallway first.

Flaitheas came around the corner and ran to me, to make sure I wouldn't get hurt.

But the fast movements caused the leader to be put on edge. When she reached the room, he pulled out a small pistol. The leader took aim, and Flaitheas hissed, causing her drones to hiss as well.

The leader tensed his finger around the trigger. "Don't shoot!" I begged him. But the soldier would not listen. He and the queen were having a stand-off. They were only about 5 feet apart, when Flaitheas crouched. The leader repositioned his weapon. She tensed her muscles, and pushed herself off the ground to propel herself towards the soldier.

Before she hit her mark, a shot went off. Flaitheas let out a high-pitch yelp, but it quickly changed to a ferocious growl.

She crashed into the human, bringing him to the ground. He pointed his weapon right at her head, but she used her tail blade to push it away. She pinned him down quickly, and she hissed as loudly as she could right into his face.

'How dare you shoot me! You will die!'

I heard angrily in my head. 'I know you're angry at him, but don't kill him!' Flaitheas hissed again.

'You won't stop me this time! This time… he won't live.'

She turned back to the soldier and opened her mouth. I did the only thing I could. I tackled the queen and pushed her off. She did a sound between a hiss and a whimper. The drones around me made low growls. I helped the leader off the ground when I noticed something wrong with the queen. She was struggling to get up.

I ran over to her. 'I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm sorry!' I hugged her crest. She whimpered at me.

'It's not you that hurt me, it was him! He shot me in the leg!' I looked down at her leg. Her green, acidic blood was dripping from the wound. The moment it touched the ground, it sizzled and burnt through the floor.

I turned back to the soldier and yelled "Maybe I should have let her kill you! I told you not to shoot!" The leader was stuttering to say something.

"I don't care what she did! She was never going to harm you!" The drones were closing in on him. Each and every one of them was hissing.

'He hurt our queen!'

'He must be destroyed before he kills her!'

I heard them say in my head. Since the queen was unable to speak, I spoke for her…

'Kill him.'

I knew it was Flaitheas' instincts telling me to do this, but I finally understood her point of view.

They turned to him and cornered him to the wall. The first drone to walk forward was Jane. She did a low growl and opened her mouth. Her inner mouth shot out at high speed. The leader's body went limp, and fell to the ground.

The xenomorphs calmed down and went back into the shadows.

The rest of the soldiers backed as away as they could.

"Don't worry. You won't be harmed. But there is a catch. You'll have to make a choice. You can either stay here and live with us, or you can try to escape and then die in the desert."

Mason was the only one not cowering in fear. He spoke clearly, "I wish to live here."

All except on ran to the exit. The final one turned away, but looked back one last time before walking away. The drones came out of the shadows.

Jane walked forward to her queen, who was still bleeding. She rubbed her head against hers.

'I'll be fine. I heal quickly.'

She tried to stand up, but she whimpered slightly as she put her weight onto her leg. Mason walked over to me, and crouched. "Will she be okay?"

I nodded. "She'll be fine. She just needs to rest for awhile. Can you help me carry her back?" Mason stayed where he was.

"She won't hurt you. You'll be fine as long as you become friends with her."

Flaitheas hissed at my words. Mason shakily walked over to the queen. She was breathing heavily while sniffing him. He froze when she touched him, but she did nothing else to him. He tried to put his hands underneath her to pick her up, and she hissed again. This time, Mason wasn't as skittish.

He, along with the drones, carried her back to the nest. When they finally set her onto the ground, she growled at them.

'I thank you for carrying me back, now get out of my sight.'

Since he couldn't understand her, I told them, "I think you should go now. You can sleep over there." I pointed. He nodded and lied down to sleep.

I turned my attention back to the queen. 'You could at least be a little more thankful that he helped carry you back.'

She did a low hiss, almost like a laugh. 'I could. Doesn't mean I would. I don't trust humans. Except for you.' I rolled my eyes and inspected her wound. By now, it was almost healed. Only a scab was left. I yawned and lied down next to the queen.


	7. Teaching

I wrote this within an hour, so if the plot moves quickly, that's why.

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I heard screaming when I woke up. I looked for the source and found that Mason had woken up with Rachel right next to him, sleeping. His scream was short, but it was loud enough to wake everyone up. The xenomorph next to him moved closer to him, still curled in a ball.

Flaitheas groaned and heaved herself off the ground. Her leg was completely healed, leaving her strong and refreshed. I got off the ground too, and rubbed her head.

Mason struggled to get up, as Rachel kept sniffing him. Mason finally got up, and ran over to me. The queen hissed at him. He slowed down, but continued to come to me. Her hiss turned into a small growl when he got close enough. "Do they have any names?" He asked me.

I nodded. "The one that's following you is Rachel. You'll be able to remember her because she has the smallest primary arms." The xeno in question bumped his arm. "She's also one of the most playful."

Lucy bounded over next. "And this one's Lucy. She's the most friendly." She purred.

"Alice is the one with the longest tail. And Meg is the smaller of the two warrior drones."

"And that one?" He pointed to Jane.

He pointed to the xenomorph on one of the metal supports, tail draping over the side. "Oh. That's Jane. She's oldest. Doesn't tend to like humans very much."

"Really? Didn't notice." He told me sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes when Jane growled.

"Seriously though. If I were you, I'd stay away from her. She still isn't warming up to _me _yet."

Mason smirked and rubbed Rachel's head. But then he seemed to think of something more serious.

"So… how long have you been here? I mean, with the xenos?" He gently pushed Rachel away from him.

I glanced at the queen and asked mentally, 'I'd say abut a week.' She bowed her head in agreement.

I brought my attention back to Mason. "I'd say a week. But I used to work as a scientist here. For about 2 years."

"Really? I would've thought you'd have been here longer." He couldn't seem to keep his hands still while talking. It reminded me how french people use their hands to express themselves.

I sat on a nearby crate; Mason followed… and of course, Flaitheas.

"And why is that?" I asked as he sat next to me, which got Flaitheas to be set on edge. She growled as a warning. I shushed her and tried to soothe her, 'Calm down.'

She lowered her lip, and went back to her lied down position.

Mason twirled his thumbs around one another, "Well… it just seemed like you… and them… were connected."

He clasped his hands together, and glanced up at me. "Pardon me by asking, but aren't xenos supposed to be… I don't know… aggressive?"

I shrugged. "They are."

Rachel crawled to my side. I slid my palm down her head.

"But you stopped them. I saw you. That first one to come out… Meg right?" he didn't give me enough time to answer, and continued talking. "I could see she was in 'attack mode'. Personally, I think she was ready to kill one of us."

I heard a mental snicker from Meg. 'He's perceptive.'

"But you stopped her. I don't know how, but you did."

Rachel placed her head on my lap.

"It's…. kind of hard to explain." I muttered.

He chuckled warmly "I've got time."

I rolled my eyes. "I guess I'll start at the beginning-"

"Better than starting at the end." He added.

Again, I rolled my eyes.

"When I worked here, as a scientist I mean, I was in charge of examining the 'face-huggers'. I'm sure you know what those are." He nodded.

"On one shift, I guess the power went out, and one of them broke free. It just so happens that it was what we call, a 'royal' face-hugger, which lays queen eggs into a host."

Flaitheas shifted closer.

"When I extracted the xenomorph by surgical means, it didn't kill me afterwards. In fact, it cuddled up against me like a cat. From that point on, my perspective on xenomorphs changed. They _are _by instinct, aggressive, but if they are guided in the right direction, they're not so bad."

Rachel purred against my leg.

"Okay, that explains how you _live _with them. But how did you tell Meg to stop?"

I shrugged. "Flaitheas says it's because her and I are mentally connected. Xenomorphs can communicate using telepathy, so because we're connected, so can I. Does that make sense?"

He smirked, "I guess so… if I think about it."

I grinned back at him.

"So let me get this straight. You're Flaitheas' surrogate mother, you can communicate with xenos, and you even _sleep _with them?"

I nodded. "Basically. But don't worry. All xenos are female. Usually the queen's reproductive system starts making eggs without a male counterpart by a certain age. But I genetically changed her DNA so it was closer to a humans. She'll only produce eggs with a male. And since there are none of those, she can't produce."

Mason blinked, trying to process the new information.

I sighed. "Let me put that into simpler terms-"

"No no. I understood. But does that mean she's… half human?"

I shook my head. "No. Only a small fraction."

He glanced at Flaitheas, whom was already watching him. I was going to stroke Rachel's head again, but that's when he spotted my arm underneath my sleeve.

He grabbed my wrist, much to Flaitheas' dismay, and rolled up my shirt sleeve. "What's this?"

I tugged my arm away, making him let go. "It's like a mark. To brand me as important to the queen. That, and it's where Flaitheas injected me with some xenomorph DNA. So now I have slightly acidic blood, faster reflexes, and faster healing."

Unknown to Mason, Lucy had crawled over to his side. When she was close enough, she prodded his arm with her head.

He yelped from surprise, and shifted closer to me. Close enough that our shoulders touched.

After realizing it was only Lucy, he relaxed, but stayed where he was.

"So this is Lucy?" He rubbed her forehead.

"Yup." I replied.

'Play?' Lucy asked. I sighed, and told Mason, "She wants you to play with her."

His eyebrows raised. "Really? Well, isn't that cute." He scratched the bottom of her chin.

I nodded. "It's usually just her and Rachel that play."

He was about to get up, but he touched my hardened skin instead. "Cassie… Um… I guess I'll say it straight. I'm glad I stayed. The rest of my team's probably starving to death outside."

"Thanks. And I'm sorry about your team."

He ran his other hand through his light brown hair. "It's their loss." His smile grew.

Watching him, caused my own mouth to curve upwards. I gazed into his deep brown eyes. They were warm, and reminded me of chocolate. "Besides, they would have just fought over who got to have _you_."

Overcome with emotion, I leaned closer to him. He copied the action. I closed my eyes. His other hand held my shoulder.

But we were interrupted. Flaitheas had moved to my front, and growled directly at Mason.

'Back. Off.' She hissed.

Mason seemed to understand, and slid off the crate he was sitting on. He glanced over to me, but turned away when Lucy bumped his side.

Flaitheas took is spot next to me. 'He wasn't going to hurt me. Besides I'm not _that _breakable.' I muttered angrily at her.

She hissed back, 'No one gets that close to you without me allowing it. And he was already too close by touching your arm.'

I sighed and stood up slowly. 'Humans interact differently than xenomorphs do. We use touch as a major communication device. And he was just about to tell me how much he cares about staying here with us. With me too.'

She growled again. 'Next time Flaitheas… just… just leave us alone okay?'

The queen snorted. 'There won't _be _a next time.' I barely heard her.

'What?' I demanded.

She lifted her head in surprise. 'What do you mean there won't be a next time? You con't control _my _life. Mason choose to stay here. He's now part of this hive.'

She turned away and padded to Mason. I felt my heart beat pickup. 'What are you doing?' I asked her.

Flaitheas remained silent and pushed Mason with her arm to get his attention.

He turned away from Lucy and gazed up at the queen with wonder. I saw no fear in his eyes.

'If you insist he becomes part of this hive, then he must be connected to us.' She told me.

She pressed her head against his, and began to grunt with effort. It was hard enough to connect another xeno's mind with hers, but since Mason was a different species, it would take more energy from her.

She shook her head after she backed away. I suddenly felt a 'click' in my head.

Flaitheas lent down to Mason's level. 'Can you hear me?' She asked him.

He fell to the ground with a surprised yelp. "N-no way!"

'So you can?' I asked with a smirk.

He shot his eyes between Flaitheas and I. 'This. Is. Awesome!' He yelled mentally.

I rolled my eyes. 'Come on. You've got to introduce yourself to everyone now.' I told him as I offered my hand.

'Hopefully no one will kill me.' He grabbed my hand and I hauled him off the ground.


	8. Kissing?

Okay, whoever has had enough patience to wait this long for me to write another chapter… thank you. I guess I'm a procrastinator by nature. That, and I like making youtube videos more. (Go on my fanfic page to find the link)

But I read all of your reviews, and I've got to say, some of you guessed what's about to happen later on… but I'm not saying who.

:P

* * *

><p>Oh, and in case no one knew by now, if there are two quotation marks, like this: " ", then it's said aloud. If it's like this: ' ' then it's a thought.<p>

* * *

><p>Mason's greeting to the xenos was as smooth as a train wreck. I could already tell he was having difficulty. His mind was… well… random. It would jump to a different thought in the middle of another. The xenos understood why he couldn't communicate effectively, so they told him their names as if he hadn't said anything.<p>

But Jane ignored him all together by jumping to her normal perch; a ceiling beam.

For the rest of the day, I tried to train Mason on how to use telepathy. When he'd jumped to another thought, I'd mutter sternly, "Concentrate Mason."

'I'm trying!' He sounded like a radio station that kept cutting off. 'It's not like I've done this before!'

I huffed out a long sigh, and crossed my arms. 'Just think it as if you're saying it aloud.'

He ran his palms down his face. "I give up! I guess I'll settle with talking."

'Okay… but don't be surprised when they start talking.. I mean… uh… ' I stuttered mentally. 'Well, you know what I mean!'

He laughed at the fact that _I _had messed up and not him.

"Shut up. Or do I have to get Flaitheas over here?" He rose an eyebrow skeptically. "Don't you remember she already doesn't like you? In fact, she may be close to attacking you as we speak." I turned to Flaitheas and confirmed my suspicions. She was standing anxiously watching Mason's every move.

'You'd protect me.'

He sounded so sure of himself, I spun around to deny it, when I realized that he hadn't spoken. "You did it!" I smiled. He rubbed the back of his neck. "See? It wasn't _that _hard, was it?"

Mason shrugged nervously. "A-actually, no one was supposed to hear that… well… except me of course."

I felt my cheeks become hot. 'Too late now I guess.'

"Don't worry about it. As long as I did it right, I'm good."

I grabbed his hand in mine. 'We'll work on it.'

He smiled up at me as I led him back to the others.

* * *

><p>-2 weeks later<p>

Over time, I learned that a xenomorph needed little to no food to survive. I hand't seen them eat anything in the time I'd been with them.

And since I had become a mutant between a xeno and human, I only needed one meal per week. Mason however needed to use the emergency storage of food.

And water was no problem. The building was installed with a water extraction device. It was driven into the planet's crust to take the surrounding soil, which it then extracted water from.

On the 18th day of my 'new life', I was leaning against an old desk, which was now covered in xenomorph slime.

I had been writing the newest entry into my journal.

_Yet another day of my sudden change of lifestyle. Flaitheas and the others have covered just about everything now. _

_I've found that even though it's peaceful and safe, it can get EXTREMELY boring. Sure, Lucy, Rachel, and Meg would playfully wrestle, but it wasn't too entertaining until Mason would join in. _

_God… Mason… Don't get me started. He's… well, he's amazing. Unlike the rest of my new 'family', he would understand my problems. Flaitheas may have some of my DNA, but she wouldn't know the feeling of losing a loved one. Mason did though. _

_He'd lost his younger sister in an accident when he was only 7 years old. He still remembered her to this very day, which surprised me. I can barely remember anything before the age of 10! _

_But anyways, Mason and I have really connected with each other. Both he and I had been raised by a family friend when our parents died of disease. We both knew how hard it was to be surrounded by people we knew we weren't related to; to feel like an outsider. _

… _I remember a couple times when he and I were alone in a different room, and about to kiss, Flaitheas kept getting in the way. Even though we might have been alone, Flaitheas could still hear my thoughts. Which, by the way, is the most annoying thing ever. She'd begun to act like a worried parent…But I knew she was protecting me, so I let it slide the first couple times she intruded into my thoughts. _

_But when she did it the third time, Mason had already touched my lips with his. In the onslaught of emotions, I could barely hear the growling in my head. In fact, it wasn't until Flaitheas entered the room that I noticed her. _

_I think she scared the shit out of Mason, that's for sure. _

_But he was so understanding of why she protected me… He's the nicest guy anyone could ask for. Besides the fact that he can change the topic quickly, and that he can't talk without expressing himself through hand movements. _

_But god do I love him-_

"Hey Cassie!" Mason yelled behind me. I nearly dropped my journal, but managed to cradle it against my chest.

Mason chuckled at my reaction, and leaned onto the desk next to me. 'What'cha doing?' He leaned over my shoulder.

I concealed the diary under my arm, and put the pen into my coat pocket.

'Just keeping myself sane.'

He chuckled. "Oh, so it's too boring here now is it?"

I sighed, and leaned against his shoulder. "I mean it's the same every day. Sure, sometimes Lucy or Rachel do something entertaining, but overall, there's not much to do."

"Well… You've got me, haven't you?" He nudged my side with an elbow.

"I would, but with Flaitheas hearing everything, we can barely touch each other in her vicinity."

He crossed his arms. "Are you _implying _anything?"

I playfully pushed him away. 'Oh, grow up.'

'I'll grow up when Flaitheas does.' It was obvious that he knew she was already listening.

And to prove it, I heard a faint growl.

"Anyway…" He started. "What were you writing about?"

I sidestepped so I was no longer touching him. I could almost feel the blush beneath my cheeks. "Oh, just about how you play with Rachel and Lucy sometimes… and other stuff." I shyly turned my head away from him.

"Hmm… 'other stuff'… seems like you're trying to hide something."

I stiffened. "W-what makes you say that?" I tried to play dumb.

"Well… for one, you're still speaking aloud… so it must be something important. And two…" He pushed himself off the desk, and stood in front of me. I tried to look for a way around him, but his arms prevented me.

"You're trying to stay away from me now."

I was pinned against the desk, and his chest. He stood, unmoving, as he and I looked directly into each other's eyes. The stillness set me on edge. It wasn't like him to just stay in one spot for longer than a few seconds. Even when he was sleeping, he seemed to flip over constantly.

I was about to call for Flaitheas' help to get out of the situation, until he suddenly pushed his lips gently against my own. Like the times before, I was filled with a new, sparking warmth.

And I yearned for more.

I had expected Flaitheas to stop us at this point, but we remained uninterrupted.

Before I knew it, I felt his tongue enter my mouth, and I gladly accepted the contact.

He broke the kiss before I wanted it to end.

"Ohhh… I see." He chuckled. "You wrote something about me."

I was still in a dazed state, and couldn't respond to is words.

He must have seen how 'out-of-focus' I was, because in the next instant, he snatched my journal out of my arms.

The sudden movement snapped me back to reality.

"Hey! Give that back!" I reached around him to grab it, but he held me back with his other arm. "Sorry. No can do."

"Mason!" I growled. "You have no right-"

He covered my mouth and flipped open the journal with his thumb. "Let's see… boring… boring…" He flipped page after page. I struggled the further he ventured into the book.

"Ooh, what do we have here?" I glanced down at the page, and widened my eyes.

"Mason!" I begged one last time.

He only looked up at me with a grin.

I knew he'd reach the end eventually. And I wasn't sure what his reaction would be.

And then his grin twitched downward, into a small, straight line. He gently shut the journal, and looked over at me. "I thought you only had a crush on me. Guess I was wrong."

He held the journal out to me.

I relaxed my muscles, and took the book from his grasp.

"Look, Mason-"

He stopped me with another, more passionate kiss.

And that's when I figured out how men get us women to shut up.


	9. AN for Die Hard Fans of this Story

**I realize some of you are mad at me for not updating, but I think I'm finally deciding to rewrite this whole story. **

**So I'll upload the first chapter of the rewrite soon. I note of caution though... the rewrite have major plot changes, but will keep the 'cuddly-ness' of the xenomorphs.**

**I love all you guys for reviewing and following this story, because when I started this, I wasn't a big fan of it myself (Plus I wasn't that good of a writer back then)**


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